Given the inconsistency of Rwandan musical traditions, where did this come from? What were these young men’s influences?

“If you ask them, Adrien says Bob Marley, Stany says Santana and Jeanvier says he liks zouk music, a Caribbean style,” he says. “The fact that Bob Marley is the first person Adrien talks about makes sense in that there’s this social consciousness. And the other thing really amazing about the recording and discovery process beyond the songs being beautiful and that they have this unique way of singing with the interweaving of the voices is that nearly every song on the album is a love song. I knew this because they told me and something like five out of the 12 songs are names of women. That’s a very beautiful statement of live that omits the chaos with which they live.”

Kigali Y’ Izahabu is out on Tuesday! Pre-order the album here and a portion of the proceeds will go to Stories for Hope and the Kigali Memorial Centre.

Pre-Order Kigali Y’ IzahabuHERE and receive an instant download of the album.

The Good Ones’ debut album, Kigali Y’ Izahabu, is the sound of hope. Simple, acoustic love songs recorded in one summer evening on the back porch of a friend’s home in the Rwandan capital city of Kigali. With their direct, plaintive and universally likable melodies, this trio of genocide survivors speak to the healing powers of peace and hard-won spirit. Today, we make this inspiring collection of songs available now for all pre-order.

For the next generation of Rwandans, those who bear the heavy burden of a violent legacy, Stories for Hope pairs these young people with their elders to hear the crucial family stories about genocide and survival, along with rich cultural legacies. Against a conspiracy of silence, stories are recorded on CDs for youth, and preserved in Rwanda’s National Archives, as well as made available on the official Stories for Hope site.

The Kigali Memorial Centre was opened on the 10th Anniversary of the 1994 Rwandan Genocide. The Centre is a permanent memorial to those who fell victim to the genocide and serves as a place for people to grieve those they lost. The site’s Education Centre, Memorial Gardens and National Documentation Centre of the Genocide are a moving tribute to those lost, but also serve as an educational tool for the next generation of Rwandans.

Kigali Y’ Izahabu will be out November 9th in the North America, November 22nd in the UK.

Kigali Y’ Izahabu is essentially an intimate field recording that even captures the howling and barking of dogs in the background. It was recorded by two-time Grammy-nominated producer Ian Brennan, who has worked with artists such as Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Flea, TV on the Radio’s Kyp Malone, Richard Thompson and many others.